Camp near Brandy Station Va Jan 20th 64 Friend Eliza I suppose you thought I had forgotten you. this time shure, [sic] but there is realy [sic] nothing to write about and you know that my imagination is not very fertile there must something of importance take place before I can think of anough [sic] to write and then I generaly [sic] feel the effect of it for a fortnight but it is a family complaint and I am shure [sic] you will simpithize [sic] with me in my afliction, I suppose you will be surprised to hear that I have not reinlisted [sic] and more than that I have no intention of doing so. I suppose I am not very patriote but I can’t help it, and as the South is prety [sic] near starved out they will have anough [sic] without me, I hear that Luke has enlisted, Billy Noyse came over to see me the other day he is In Co. H the 5th reg’t, and you have
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no doubt seen Billey before this he has reinlisted [sic] and gone on furlough he left here on the 4th ins’t over one hundred of the 2nd have reinlisted [sic] and gone home so there will be about one hundred of us to be discharged in June I think there will be some long faces amongst the other hundred about that time, they have been shooting quite a number here lately for desertion, they shot one out of our reg’t and one of the 5th on the 18th of last month. there was elven shot in the army on that day, five on Christ- -mas and there will be nine more shot on the 29th of this month, it is prety [sic] hard to see men standing beside their own graves
and kneeling on their coffins to be shot, it is rather strange they should let the crime of desertion go unpunished for two years and then to commence shooting every man they catch, some of those officers that sit on [strikethrough] cotts [/strikethrough] courts martials will be very apt to die suddenly during next
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summers campaigne, [sic] for the friends of those men that have been shot has got them marked, and there is always opportunitys [sic] anough [sic] during a battle to put an end to their miserable existance [sic] we have had some snow here but it all gone and we have plenty of rain and mud, but we have prety [sic] comfortable quarters and I think we will be able to stand it until spring, one great trouble is that wood is getting very scarce, you have no idea what a site of wood an army as large as this will use up during a winter, the mail is just going out so with love to all I will close. good bye
Hammond
